How to Reduce Roof Gutter Downspout Freeze Ups on Commercial Buildings

How to Reduce Roof Gutter Downspout Freeze Ups on Commercial Buildings

We’re installing a commercial underground drainage system for roof runoff water. We have the downspouts running into an underground drainage system. I want to explain why downspouts freeze up no matter what in the winter time, no matter what system, no matter what pipe you use.

When it’s 20 degrees outside and you’re below freezing and the sun is melting the snow and ice on the roof, it runs down these gutter downspouts. So, here we’ll have the example of 20 degrees. We’re at 20 degrees. We have direct UV rays, so we’ve got radiant energy just melting the snow and ice off the roof. Soon as it hits this ice cold aluminum gutter downspout, it just freezes up. As the water runs through here, it just freezes.  So as it’s freezing and freezing and freezing and building up where you end up with a blocked downspout. This ice cold aluminum just freezes on contact.

So, what we do when we have a commercial system ran to a storm drain catch basin that’s deep. That’s perfect. That’s exactly what you want. You have heat coming up and just for an approximate number, in the wintertime, you’re going to have her on 45 degrees in these deep storm drain catch basins and that rising heat will help prevent this from freezing.

So when we hook up to these commercial gutter downspouts on these commercial buildings, I see a lot of guys doing this and I and I understand it’s clean, it’s neat. I understand the thought behind it. You want ventilation so we just use the belled end of the pipe this way you have a great air exchange and after a freeze up and you can’t avoid it, there’s no avoiding freeze ups.  But during our freestyle cycles, you can clear these gutter downspouts repeatedly as long as you have good circulation on these commercial buildings.

For commercial underground drainage system, give us a call. We service Macomb County, Michigan, Oakland County, Michigan, Lapeer County, Michigan, and St Clair County, Michigan. For commercial building underground drainage systems.